There were definitely no bright shiny ribbons on this Lib-Nats Christmas
box as Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Bligh Turnbull, along with
his ministers, senators and MPs, trailed in the 25th consecutive Newspoll.

Labor leads the Coalition by 53 per cent to 47, representing a
national swing against the government of three per cent.

The poll of 1669 voters across the country, conducted for The
Australian over the weekend, shows the Coalition has made no ground in the
past two weeks with Labor maintaining a one-point primary vote lead of 37.

Nor was there a Christmas gift for average Australian families in
this little budgetary effort by Messrs. Turnbull, Morrison and Cormann set out below.Because
the bottom line is that:wages growth is expected to remain low; the national
unemployment rate isn't predicted to fall below 5.25% in the foreseeable future; there are additional
funding cuts in education;so-called debt recovery from welfare recipients will
continue with enhancements;reductions in certain types of welfare payment also
continue apace; tha taxation system remains skewed against ordinaty workers AND government gross debt continues to grow across the forward
estimates while government revenue growth is somewhat subdued.

There is also no Treasury forecast that Morrison's promiseded 2020-21 $23 billion reduction of the 2018-19 projected $591 billion total gross government debt will actually happen.

Koala populations are under siege in many parts of NSW, including the far north coast of NSW. Photo: Cole Bennetts

The Berejiklian government proceeded to buy two blocks of land for koala habitat, overriding internal concerns the purchases were "not a priority" as protections were already in place.

The acquisition of the land in the Tweed Shire earlier this year comes as a new poll finds strong strong local support for new koala national parks.

There is also confirmation the state's new biodiversity conservation act prevents threatened regional populations of any species - including koalas - securing elevated endangered status.

Documents released under freedom of information to the North Coast Environment Centre (NCEC) reveal Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) staff doubted the benefits of paying almost $1 million for about 104 hectares of land for koala protection near Pottsville, north of Byron Bay……

Ashley Love, a spokesman for the North Coast Environment Council, said the spending appeared aimed at shoring up support for National MPs in marginal electorates in the region.

"It was a bad precedent at the very beginning of when this government's going to spend a lot of money on private land," he said…..

A ReachTEL of 700 residents in the state seat of Lismore found 68.3 per cent of participants in Lismore town and 71.9 per cent in Ballina support the creation of national parks to protect koalas from logging and land clearing.

"This polling shows that were the government to create them, they would be broadly welcomed," Alix Goodwin, chief executive of the NSW National Parks Association, said.

"We expect that the forthcoming Whole of Government Koala Strategy will reflect the wishes of the community and include new protected areas."

The new biodiversity conservation act, which is widely viewed as easing controls on land-clearing, has also stripped the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee of its ability to highlight localised threats to species.

The independent NSW Scientific Committee made a preliminary finding in August that the koala population near Port Stephens was endangered as it is '"facing a very high risk of extinction in NSW in the near future."

However, the new conservation regulations passed later that month precluded a local population of a species from having a separate rating if it already listed. Koalas are deemed "vulnerable" in NSW.

Saturday, 23 December 2017

“When we have obtained emails in the course of our ongoing criminal investigation, we have secured either the account owner’s consent or appropriate criminal process” [US DoJ Special Counsel’s Office spokesperson, Peter Carr speaking about Trump Transition Team emails, in Slate on 17 December 2017]

Downer was set to develop and operate the mine, but Adani will instead run the mine as an owner-operator.

“Following on from the NAIF veto last week, and in line with its vision to achieve the lowest quartile cost of production by ensuring flexibility and efficiencies in the supply chain, Adani has decided to develop and operate the mine on an owner operator basis,” it read.

“Adani and Downer have mutually agreed to cancel all Letter of Awards and Downer will provide transitional assistance until 31st March 2018.

“Adani remains committed to develop the Carmichael project and will ensure the highest level of standards and governance.

These fines are all overdue and an unknown number of these debtors are serial defaulters.

Here are the top five serial offenders:

The person owing the largest dollar amount hails from the Northmead area, the second largest has an address in the vicinity of Waterloo-Zetland, the third is somewhere in Artarmon and, the fourth & fifth seem to call the Eastern Suburbs home.

In the 2016-17 financial year the State Debt Recovery Office wrote off est. $68.23 million in debt still outstanding.

Thursday, 21 December 2017

One can tell a great deal about a corporation if one looks at when and how it was created.

The Noble Caledonia cruise line* likes to brag that it was created in 1991 out of a passion for small ships.

The company which created the cruise line was called Quayshelfco 382 Limited (incorporated 1 August 1991) before its name change to Noble Caledonia Limited registered on 30 October 1991 and, it has extremely long articles of association.

Trump administration officials are forbidding officials at the nation's top public health agency from using a list of seven words or phrases - including "fetus" and "transgender" - in any official documents being prepared for next year's budget.

Policy analysts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta were told of the list of forbidden words at a meeting Thursday with senior CDC officials who oversee the budget, according to an analyst who took part in the 90-minute briefing. The forbidden words are: "vulnerable," "entitlement," "diversity," "transgender," "fetus," "evidence-based" and "science-based."

In some instances, the analysts were given alternative phrases. Instead of "science-based" or "evidence-based," the suggested phrase is "CDC bases its recommendations on science in consideration with community standards and wishes," the person said. In other cases, no replacement words were immediately offered.

The question of how to address such issues as sexual orientation, gender identity and abortion rights - all of which received significant visibility under the Obama administration - has surfaced repeatedly in federal agencies since President Donald Trump took office. Several key departments - including Health and Human Services, which oversees CDC, as well as Justice, Education and Housing and Urban Development - have changed some federal policies and how they collect government information about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans.

In March, for example, HHS dropped questions about sexual orientation and gender identity in two surveys of elderly people.

HHS has also removed information about LGBT Americans from its website. The department's Administration for Children and Families, for example, archived a page that outlined federal services that are available for LGBT people and their families, including how they can adopt and receive help if they are the victims of sex trafficking.

At the CDC, the meeting about the banned words was led by Alison Kelly, a senior leader in CDC's Office of Financial Services, according to the CDC analyst who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly. Kelly did not say why the words are being banned, according to the analyst, and told the group that she was merely relaying the information.

Other CDC officials confirmed the existence of a list of forbidden words. It's likely that other parts of HHS are operating under the same guidelines regarding the use of these words, the analyst said.

At the CDC, several offices have responsibilities for work that uses sAt the CDC, several offices have responsibilities for work that uses some of these words. The National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention is working on ways to prevent HIV among transgender people and reduce health disparities. The CDC's work on birth defects caused by the Zika virus, for example, includes research on the developing fetus.

The ban is related to the budget and supporting materials that are to be given to CDC's partners and to Congress, the analyst said. The president's budget for 2019 is expected to be released in early February. The budget blueprint is generally shaped to reflect an administration's priorities.

I have refreshed my Ministry to reflect the priorities and values of my Government.

The Ministry features two new, major portfolios: one focused on job creation, the other on national security. This reflects my Government’s determination to provide opportunity and security for every Australian.

We have entrusted those portfolios to two of our most experienced and respected Ministers.

Peter Dutton will become Minister for Home Affairs, for the first time bringing together the nation’s security, border and intelligence agencies under one department.

Senator Michaelia Cash will become Minister for Jobs and Innovation, charged with harnessing the policies of the government to create more jobs and job opportunities.

Senator Cash will be a key part of the Government’s economic team working to deliver on our commitment of more jobs, more investment, and stronger economic growth.

I’m delighted to welcome Barnaby Joyce back as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport - a vital portfolio as the Government rolls out its record $75 billion infrastructure program.

Christian Porter will become Attorney General, a role he previously held in the West Australian State Government.

Mathias Cormann will take on the additional role Special Minister of State. Mathias’s expanded portfolio is testament to his outstanding performance as a Cabinet Minister.

Kelly O’Dwyer will take on the additional role of Minister for Women, which was previously held by Senator Cash.

Michael Keenan will join Cabinet as Minister for Human Services and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Digital Transformation - a central role in ensuring all Australians get the services they expect when dealing with the Government, particularly as more and more services shift online.

Dan Tehan will join Cabinet in the critical role of Minister for Social Services. He will work closely with the newly created role of Assistant Minister for Children and Families, which will be filled by David Gillespie, as well as with Jane Prentice, who has been doing an outstanding job as Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services.

John McVeigh, who previously served as a minister in the Queensland Liberal National Party State Government, will join Cabinet as Minister for Regional Development, Territories and Local Government.

David Littleproud will become Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources. He will bring to the role two decades of experience in agribusiness before he joined parliament.

This new Cabinet will not include some familiar faces.

Senator Arthur Sinodinos wrote to me this week to tell me his medical treatment is taking longer than anticipated and he is unlikely to be able to return from leave until the middle of next year.

In those circumstances, he has asked that he not be included in this new ministry.

Senator Sinodinos is one of this generation’s most accomplished and experienced public servants and his contributions to the Cabinet have been sorely missed since his illness was first diagnosed.

Naturally, we wish him well in his recovery and I look forward to him regaining full health and returning to a senior Ministerial or other government role in the future.

Senator George Brandis, who after 17 years of distinguished service in the Senate, has signalled his plans to stand down.

Senator Brandis has been a stalwart of this Government in the Senate, particularly in the past couple of years given the difficulties of negotiating with a large and, at times, unpredictable crossbench.

Senator Brandis' legacy as Attorney General will be remembered for two things in particular. First, it was on his watch as Attorney, and in so small measure thanks to his eloquent advocacy over many years, that Australia legislated for marriage equality.

Secondly, as the Minister responsible for domestic national security since 2013, he undertook the most comprehensive reforms of our national security laws to keep Australians safe.

I hope that Senator Brandis’ public service to the nation is not over. Early in the new year I intend to recommend to the Governor-General that he be appointed as Australia’s new High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. I know he will excel at this role.

Senator Brandis’ position as Leader of the Senate will be filled by Senator Cormann, who has been integral in steering the Government’s agenda through the Senate. His determination and his counsel are invaluable.

I obviously consult with the Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the Nationals on the makeup of the Ministry.

I take this opportunity to thank Darren Chester for his significant contributions to the Cabinet as the outgoing Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. I know that we will all continue to call on his wisdom and experience.

Changes in the Outer Ministry reflect this Government’s focus on business enterprise, national security and families.

Craig Laundy is promoted to the role of Minister for Small & Family Business, Workplaces and Deregulation. Craig spent two decades in private business before joining Parliament so will bring unique insight into the challenges faced by small businesses.

He will take direct responsibility for workplace relations and will work closely with Senator Cash in her new role to ensure the Government is doing everything possible to give companies the confidence they need to invest and create jobs, and to give Australians the confidence they can get the skills and opportunities they need to find a job or land a better paying job.

Michaelia Cash, Craig Laundy and Zed Seselja - as the new Assistant Minister for Science, Jobs and Innovation - will work together to make sure we harness the jobs of the future through new industries and small business so Australians can adapt and thrive in this era of innovation and technological change.

As Minister for Home Affairs, Peter Dutton will be supported by two Ministers: Angus Taylor as Minister for Law Enforcement and Cybersecurity and Alan Tudge as Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs.

He will also continue to have the assistance of Alex Hawke as Assistant Minister for Home Affairs.

The Department of Home Affairs will keep Australians safer by ensuring full coordination between ASIO, the AFP, Australian Border Force, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and AUSTRAC. It will also contribute enormously to nation building through its focus on our immigration program.

Paul Fletcher will take on an expanded role as Minister for Urban Infrastructure and Cities, charged with ensuring the Government’s infrastructure program meets its objectives of reducing congestion and improving the liveability of our cities. He will also continue the delivery of City Deals with state and local governments around the country.

After serving as Minister for Small Business since last year, Michael McCormack will become Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Defence Personnel and will assist me in this final year of the ANZAC centenary.

Melissa Price joins the Ministry as Assistant Minister for the Environment. She will work closely with Minister for Environment and Energy Josh Frydenberg and is tasked with developing and implementing the Government’s policies on issues as broad as climate change, Landcare and the protection of the Great Barrier Reef.

In the new role of Assistant Minister for Children and Families, Dr David Gillespie will work with the Minister for Social Services, Dan Tehan, to ensure children get the best start in life and families get all the support they need.

Damian Drum, currently the Chief Nationals Whip, will join the ministry as Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister.

David Coleman, who came to Parliament after a long career in business, is also elevated to the ministry as Assistant Minister for Finance, while Luke Hartsuyker moves to the role of Assistant Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment.

I thank Keith Pitt for his service in the Assistant Trade Minister role.

The Ministry is filled with energy and rich with diverse life experiences.

Together we look forward to securing and delivering a safer and more prosperous Australia. [My yellow highlighting]

On 15 August 2016 four representatives of United Land Councils Ltd & United First Peoples Syndications Pty Ltd gave evidence before the NSW Legislative Council General Purpose Standing Committee No. 6 INQUIRY INTO CROWN LAND.

HE WAS brash and brilliant. A young lawyer from Melbourne who became a rising star of the public service, hand-picked to serve as assistant tax commissioner by the age of 30.

That was until a spectacular fall from grace left Nick Petroulias jailed for using his plum position to do the very thing he was tasked with stamping out: defrauding the tax office.

Since his release from prison in 2010, Mr Petroulias has kept a low profile, going by a number of aliases including Michael Felson and Nick Petersen.

He described himself as a “disabled pensioner” on bankruptcy forms in 2015, with his debts estimated at an eye-watering $104 million.

But Fairfax Media can reveal that he has been accused of working behind the scenes to dupe a wealthy Chinese property developer into the illegal purchase of $12.6 million of Aboriginal land across Newcastle.

The matter is the subject of a Supreme Court legal battle that veteran lawyers have described as one of the most extraordinary cases they have seen in their careers.

Labelled by a lawyer familiar with the case as a real-life version of “Alice in Wonderland”, its cast of characters includes an international fugitive known as Robbie Rocket, a convicted drug dealer and a dead company director who somehow continued signing agreements a year after he was cremated in a Sydney cemetery.

The existence of an international money laundering syndicate and a karaoke junket intended as a bribery attempt are among the other sensational allegations contained within thousands of pages of evidence that have been tendered to the court.

Collectively, the lands were valued at $12.6 million.

Two Awabakal board members met with Mr Zong. At the negotiating table, they introduced him to Mr Petroulias – an agent for the parties involved – and Knightsbridge North Lawyers, a firm enlisted to broker the deal.

The only catch, Mr Zong was informed, was that the portfolio of land had already been sold to another buyer a year beforehand.

But he was assured that in return for a payment, that purchaser would remove themself from the picture.

By the end of the year, things appeared to be proceeding smoothly.

Mr Zong had signed sales contracts, begun pursuing the land’s rezoning and outlaid nearly a million dollars – money he believed was a combination of a deposit and a payout for the former buyer.

But then came a shock announcement that threatened to derail the transaction: the state government had launched an investigation into the land council.

The investigation followed complaints about the land council’s governance and finances.

But Mr Zong alleges he was reassured the deal was still on a steady footing. He claims to have been told by Mr Petroulias that “there was no reason arising from the investigation that would compromise the validity of the transaction documents”.

However, damning findings from the government’s investigator resulted in the land council being placed into administration. Then, the confirmation came: the sale was off.

Mr Zong ordered the immediate repayment of his $1 million, but his demands were refused. His property development companies – Sunshine Property Investment Group and Sunshine Warners Bay – launched a civil claim for damages and to recoup the losses.

Caught in the legal crossfire was the land council, its law firm Knightsbridge, and the land’s original buyer, a mysterious company registered under the name Gows Heat.

Since it was placed into administration last year, the Awabakal land council has been under the control of Terry Lawler, a prominent Newcastle financier and philanthropist awarded an OAM in January.

Mr Lawler has recruited a high-powered legal team – including top silk Jeremy Kirk SC – to defend the land council and launch a cross-claim.

They have argued that the sales contracts Mr Zong signed were bogus and none of the proceeds found their way into the land council’s coffers.

Tuesday, 19 December 2017

“If data can be re-identified with no more than SQL, there's no
"if" about a leak, and the "when" is history.”[Journalist Richard Chirgwin, Twitter
18 December 2017]

“But why are
medical records so attractive? Well, it turns out that there’s a metaphorical
holiday feast of enticing data served up in your average health record. Family
history, demographic data, insurance information, medications, etc. means
there’s enough information to completely steal an individual’s identity and
commit medication fraud, financial fraud, insurance fraud and a wide array of
other crimes. When this very private, unchangeable information gets into the
wrong hands, devastation can ensue.” [Robert
Lord writing in Forbes,
15 December 2017]

First the Australian general public were told that patient data was well protected and data breaches wouldn't happen as a result of government's drive to collect, cross-match and retain as much information about each and every Australian citizen/permanent resident as possible.

We were all going to be safe once more in the arms of the Turnbull Government.

Now the cat is out of the bag, because that billion-line 30 year's worth of personal health information about est. 3 million people just won't stay in the back of the ministerial cupboard where Greg Hunt shoved it.

One in ten Australians'
private health records have been unwittingly exposed by the Department of
Health in an embarrassing blunder that includes potentially exposing if someone
is on HIV medication, whether mothers have had terminations, or if mentally unwell
people are seeing psychologists.

A report, published on
Monday by Dr Chris Culnane, Dr Benjamin Rubinstein and Dr Vanessa Teague from
the University of Melbourne's School of Computing and Information Systems,
outlines how de-identified historical health data from the Australian Medicare
Benefits Scheme (MBS) and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) released to
the public in August 2016 can be re-identified using known information about
the person to find their record.

The study reveals unique
patient records matching the online public information of seven prominent
Australians, including three (former or current) MPs and an AFL footballer.
While a unique match may not always be accurate, Dr Rubinstein said there was
the possibility to improve confidence by cross-referencing other data.

"Because only 10
per cent of Australians are included in the sample data, there can be a
coincidental resemblance to someone who isn't included," he said.

"We can improve
confidence by cross-referencing with a second dataset of population-wide
billing frequencies. We can also examine uniqueness according to the
characteristics of commercial datasets we know of, such as bank billing
data."…….

Privacy analyst and
Lockstep consultant Stephen Wilson said the breach damaged public confidence in
health policy makers and data custodians.

"It's a huge breach
of trust," he said.

"Promises of
'de-identification' and 'anonymisation' made by health officials, and ABS too
in connection with census data releases, have been shown to be erroneous.

"The ability to
re-identify patients from this sort of public release is frankly, in my view,
catastrophic. Real dangers are posed to patients with socially difficult
conditions.

"It beggars belief
that any official would promise 'anonymity' any more. These promises cannot be
kept."

"In this case,
clearly more work needs to be done to protect individuals' identities,' he
said. "My hope is that the government embraces responsible research like
this and strives to improve confidentiality rather than penalise those seeking
to report deficiencies such as this."

The federal Department
of Health was notified about the issue December last year.

"The Department of
Health takes this matter very seriously and had already referred this to the
Privacy Commissioner," a Department of Health spokesperson told Fairfax
Media......

Meanwhile, the Office of
the Australian Information Commissioner, which houses Australia's privacy
commissioner, said it was investigating the publication of the datasets.

"The investigation
was opened under section 40(2) of the Australian Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act)
in late September 2016 when the Department of Health notified the OAIC that the
datasets were potentially vulnerable to re-identification," a spokesperson
said.

"Given the
investigation into the Medicare Benefits Scheme (MBS) and Pharmaceutical
Benefits Scheme (PBS) datasets is ongoing, we are unable to comment on it
further at this time.

However, the
commissioner will make a public statement at the conclusion of the
investigation."

The OAIC said it
continued to work with Australian government agencies to enhance privacy
protection in published datasets.....

Labor MP for Jagajaga and Shadow Minister for Families and Social Services Jenny Macklin, media release. 5 December 2017:

CASHLESS DEBIT CARD

Federal Labor will support the continuation of the existing cashless debit card trial sites in Ceduna and the East Kimberley.

However Labor will not support the rollout of the cashless debit card to the two new proposed sites of Bundaberg and the Goldfields due to insufficient consultation with these communities, and the widespread criticism of the evaluation and the effectiveness of the card.

After conducting our own consultations with people in Bundaberg and the Goldfields and hearing evidence from the Senate Inquiry, it has become clear that Labor cannot support Social Services Legislation Amendment (Cashless Debit Card) Bill 2017 in its current form.

Labor believes that there is insufficient credible evidence at this point to support the establishment of further trials of the cashless debit card.

The flawed Orima Evaluation of the existing trials in Ceduna and the East Kimberley was inconclusive.

The Orima evaluation was subject to detailed criticism from leading academics, including Dr Janet Hunt from ANU, who said the evaluation does: “not present adequate evidence of the trial leading to successful outcomes for participants…. it is impossible to have confidence that the trial actually succeeded.”

Given the significant cost of the trials, an accrued cost of around $25.5 million or about $12,000 per participant, we must be sure that the cashless card can deliver its stated objectives.

We have consistently said that we will take a community-by-community approach to the further rollout of the cashless debit card.

Labor also has concerns that two years is not long enough for communities to determine whether there has been any real benefit from the introduction of the cashless debit card.

We are hearing that the communities in the existing trial sites want to continue using the card, and see the trial through.

We will continue to support the continuation of the trials in Ceduna and the East Kimberley for these reasons.

Labor will move amendments to the Bill to extend the end date for the trials in Ceduna and the East Kimberley to 30 June 2019 so that a proper evaluation can take place over a longer trial period.

We have always said that we are supportive of community driven initiatives designed to tackle chronic alcohol abuse. But they must be genuinely community driven and not be part of a top-down approach.

Labor understands that entrenched disadvantage cannot, and will not, be solved by income management alone. That’s why we have always advocated for the Government to provide additional wraparound supports to participating communities.

We are calling on the Senate to support our amendment that funding for these vital wraparound service be guaranteed in the legislation.

In future, Labor will only consider the introduction of any new trial sites if the Government can show that the community have agreed through a formal consultation process with the community, as well as an agreed definition of consent, and have established an evidence base through a robust and credible evaluation.

Monday, 18 December 2017

Then Australian Labour Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced her intention to call a royal commission into child sexual abuse on 12 November 2012.By 11 January 2013 six commissioners had been appointed and on 3 April 2013 the first of fifty-seven public hearings was underway.These public hearings conducted 57 case studies, 30 of which examined responses to child sexual
abuse in religious institutions.The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse formally closed on 15 December 2017 when it presented its final report to the Governor-General.By that time the Royal Commission had heard evidence from nearly 8,000 historic abuse survivors with 6,875 survivors being heard in private sessions, of whom 4,029 (58.6 per cent) spoke about child sexual abuse in religious institutions. There were more allegations of child sexual abuse in relation to the Catholic Church than any other religious organisation, followed by the Anglican Church, The Salvation Army and others. ABC News created this graph on 15 December 2017:

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
[Adopted and proclaimed by United Nations General Assembly resolution 217 A (III) of 10 December 1948]

NSW North Coast

Australian Bureau of Meteorology

Moggy Musings

Hi! My name is Boy. I'm a male bi-coloured tabby cat. Ever since I discovered that Malcolm Turnbull's dogs were allowed to blog, I have been pestering Clarencegirl to allow me a small space on North Coast Voices.

A false flag musing: I have noticed one particular voice on Facebook which is Pollyanna-positive on the subject of the Port of Yamba becoming a designated cruise ship destination. What this gentleman doesn’t disclose is that, as a principal of Middle Star Pty Ltd, he could be thought to have a potential pecuniary interest due to the fact that this corporation (which has had an office in Grafton since 2012) provides consultancy services and tourismbusiness development services.

A religion & local government musing: On 11 October 2017 Clarence Valley Council has the Church of Jesus Christ Development Fund Inc in Sutherland Local Court No. 6 for a small claims hearing. It would appear that there may be a little issue in rendering unto Caesar. On 19 September 2017 an ordained minister of a religion (which was named by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in relation to 40 instances of historical child sexual abuse on the NSW North Coast) read the Opening Prayer at Council’s ordinary monthly meeting. Earlier in the year an ordained minister (from a church network alleged to have supported an overseas orphanage closed because of child abuse claims in 2013) read the Opening Prayer and an ordained minister (belonging to yet another church network accused of ignoring child sexual abuse in the US and racism in South Africa) read the Opening Prayer at yet another ordinary monthly meeting. Nice one councillors - you are covering yourselves with glory!

An investigative musing: Newcastle Herald, 12 August 2017: The state’s corruption watchdog has been asked to investigate the finances of the Awabakal Aboriginal Local Land Council, less than 12 months after the troubled organisation was placed into administration by the state government. The Newcastle Herald understands accounting firm PKF Lawler made the decision to refer the land council to the Independent Commission Against Corruption after discovering a number of irregularities during an audit of its financial statements.The results of the audit were recently presented to a meeting of Awabakal members. Administrator Terry Lawler did not respond when contacted by the Herald and a PKF Lawler spokesperson said it was unable to comment on the matter. Given the intricate web of company relationships that existed with at least one former board member it is not outside the realms of possibility that, if ICAC accepts this referral, then United Land Councils Limited (registered New Zealand) and United First Peoples Syndications Pty Ltd(registered Australia) might be interviewed. North Coast Voices readers will remember that on 15 August 2015 representatives of these two companied gave evidence before NSW Legislative Council General Purpose Standing Committee No. 6 INQUIRY INTO CROWN LAND. This evidence included advocating for a Yamba mega port.

A Nationals musing: Word around the traps is that NSW Nats MP for Clarence Chris Gulaptis has been talking up the notion of cruise ships visiting the Clarence River estuary. Fair dinkum! That man can be guaranteed to run with any bad idea put to him. I'm sure one or more cruise ships moored in the main navigation channel on a regular basis for one, two or three days is something other regular river users will really welcome. *pause for appreciation of irony* The draft of the smallest of the smaller cruise vessels is 3 metres and it would only stay safely afloat in that channel. Even the Yamba-Iluka ferry has been known to get momentarily stuck in silt/sand from time to time in Yamba Bay and even a very small cruise ship wouldn't be able to safely enter and exit Iluka Bay. You can bet your bottom dollar operators of cruise lines would soon be calling for dredging at the approach to the river mouth - and you know how well that goes down with the local residents.

A local councils musing: Which Northern Rivers council is on a low-key NSW Office of Local Government watch list courtesy of feet dragging by a past general manager?

A serial pest musing: I'm sure the Clarence Valley was thrilled to find that a well-known fantasist is active once again in the wee small hours of the morning treading a well-worn path of accusations involving police, local business owners and others.

An investigative musing: Which NSW North Coast council is batting to have the longest running code of conduct complaint investigation on record?

A which bank? musing: Despite a net profit last year of $9,227 million the Commonwealth Bank still insists on paying below Centrelink deeming rates interest on money held in Pensioner Security Accounts. One local wag says he’s waiting for the first bill from the bank charging him for the privilege of keeping his pension dollars at that bank.

A Daily Examiner musing: Just when you thought this newspaper could sink no lower under News Corp management, it continues to give column space to Andrew Bolt.

A thought to ponder musing: In case of bushfire or flood - do you have an emergency evacuation plan for the family pet?

An adoption musing: Every week on the NSW North Coast a number of cats and dogs find themselves without a home. If you want to do your bit and give one bundle of joy a new family, contact Happy Paws on 0419 404 766 or your local council pound.